


Jalouse

by chronicAngel



Series: Concresce [4]
Category: League of Legends
Genre: F/M, Flirting, Jealousy, Kissing, POV Third Person, Returning Home
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-30 01:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15741639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chronicAngel/pseuds/chronicAngel
Summary: jalousev. to suspect; to be jealous of





	Jalouse

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mikorins](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikorins/gifts).



> I was having a really bad block with the one I had planned to write so I'm taking a little break with this one. I was hesitant to write it because it mentioned something that could directly conflict with our roleplay in the future, but ultimately decided that they don't actually have to be explicitly the same. Let me know if you want me to take it down anyway! :)
> 
> P.S., writing out "you all" was painful for me as a Midwesterner.

They get back to Piltover and are immediately greeted by...

"Who is this?" She whispers, leaning over to Vi if only because she is concerned about the way Ezreal is already gritting his teeth as though he is seething just at the sight of the man before them. She had expected to be greeted by Caitlyn when they got back and she supposes he had expected as much as well. Whoever they are actually facing, it is an unpleasant confrontation for Ezreal. She is immediately inclined to dislike this man.

It is Ezreal who answers her anyway, though it seems to take a great deal of effort. "This is Jayce."

She has heard the name even if she's never met him or seen his face anywhere. A local celebrity in Piltover for his inventions, he's said to be as awful to work with as he is brilliant. She does not look forward to being in his company for any length of time. "You must be Lady Crownguard. I've heard about you," he says, and she thinks he is trying to be charming but it doesn't work very well. She does not like the way her name sounds in his voice.

"Call me Luxanna," she says, smiling warmly, because it is what she has been taught to do her entire life no matter how much she dislikes the other person on principle. She notices the way Ezreal tenses out of the corner of her eye, but she's not sure if it's because she's being nice to a person he so clearly despises or if it's because she's talking to him at all. "Not to be rude, but I believe we were all expecting Caitlyn to greet us. Do you know where she might be?"

"Caitlyn is busy. Being sheriff of Piltover is a big job. She sent me to make sure the six of you made it back into the city okay." She is offended at the insinuation that they couldn't do that on their own, but beyond that is confused at how and why he is in contact with Caitlyn at all. She knows him to be a scientist, not the sort of person who would interact very much with the police. She does not want to ask, though, because he seems like the sort of person who would love to talk about himself. "I'll just guide you all back to the police station," he says, but he looks directly at her and she opens her mouth to say something but he has already turned around and started walking.

She looks over her shoulder, half-incredulous and half-confused, to see Ekko and Ezreal whispering about something. She doesn't want to interrupt, so she falls into step with Fiora and Shyvana, who stand just in front of them with matching sour expressions. "How often are you in Piltover?" He asks. He doesn't even look at her, but she can somehow tell that he's talking to her specifically.

"Not very often," she admits. She has only been to the city-state a handful of times before, each time to begin a mission or else to report back at the end of one. "I imagine I'll be here more often in the future, though," she adds, and she lets her eyes flick to Ezreal for a moment. He doesn't have a visible reaction.

"I'll look forward to seeing more of you," he says, and the intonation of his voice changes but she can't quite place what this means. Whatever it is, it is enough for Ezreal to start walking slightly faster so he can grab her hand even as Fiora and Shyvana are walking right next to them. If she weren't so concerned by how tight he is gripping it, she might pull away. As it stands, she looks over at him and tries not to wince at his clenched jaw. She does not know if she did something wrong or if he is simply getting increasingly worked up over the Jayce thing, but she does not like seeing him like this whatever the case may be.

"Are you okay?" She whispers, taking the smallest step possible toward him. He shakes his head and does not say anything, and she does not know if he is dismissing her question or answering it. "We're not very far from the police station. Everything will be fine," she tries to reassure, but he just drops her hand and falls back to whisper with Ekko some more. She feels her cheeks heat up. _So it is something I did, then_ , she thinks, forcing herself not to stare at him over her shoulder. She normally knows what she did. She cannot identify it now. It feels worse.

Jayce gestures to buildings around them casually while they pass, telling her what they are and when they were built and other fun facts that she'd much rather hear from Ezreal. He practically ignores everyone else in their group, even as Ekko almost slips away when they pass the tunnel to Zaun and Vi yawns theatrically every time he talks.

After what feels like an hour but must have been only fifteen minutes, they arrive at the police station. She is surprised Ezreal doesn't storm inside without a word with how visibly angry he is even as she stays behind to talk to Jayce. (It would be rude not to. They have to exchange partings, at least.) Fiora goes inside anyway, despite likely having the exact some etiquette rules taught to her their whole lives. Ekko follows as though only realizing it is okay to ignore what this man is saying once Fiora has done it. Ezreal, Shyvana, and Vi remain outside with her, though, even as Ezreal looks ready to scream and Vi wears an expression like she'd rather be anywhere else (like inside, talking to Caitlyn, for example). "Do you know how long you'll be staying before going back to Demacia?"

"No," she admits. "Likely a few days. No longer than a week, ideally. We haven't talked about it very much."

 _We_. Lux and Ezreal. She does not look at him for fear that he will still be mad at her, because she does not want to get into a fight over something as dumb as glancing at him too much with her worried looks, but she hopes he knows she means _them_ and not the group as a whole. That his input on when she leaves matters more to her than Fiora's or Shyvana's. "You should come and see my laboratory before you go." She is fascinated by the offer. On the one hand, she does not particularly want to interact with this man more than she absolutely has to. On the other, she gets the feeling not many people get to see private laboratories in Piltover.

As though to confirm it, he adds, "Not many girls get to see it," but it's with that tone again that she can't quite place and the way that he emphasizes "girls" makes her eye twitch. Then he winks and it makes her stomach twist because it feels like he's implying that simply because she is a girl--

Ezreal's fist flies directly into Jayce's nose, so fast and hard that she doesn't even see it. She supposes the inventor must not, either, as he takes the brunt of the hit, so hard it actually knocks him back a step. Vi lets out a sound halfway between a hiss of sympathy pain and an amused, encouraging laugh. Shyvana lets out a startled yelp of "Ezreal!" Lux just stares between him and Jayce, largely uncertain what led to the punch.

"That was a good one. Nice job, pretty boy," Jayce says, and this time Lux catches Ezreal with her arms around his waist before he dives forward so he is simply straining against her grip for a second.

"Stop it!" She yells, holding him against her. Jayce's hand is already on his hammer as though to swing it should Ezreal try to punch him again. He could use Ne'zuk's gauntlet to get out of her grip easily, but he lets her hold him still. She almost sighs in relief. That is closer to the Ezreal that she knows. Everyone stands around in tense silence for a second, Ezreal and Jayce staring at each other, Lux keeping her arms around Ezreal just in case she has to restrain him, and Vi practically chanting _Fight_! with her eyes.

Without a word, she drops her arms and grabs Ezreal's hand in one move, and then drags him inside the police station and to the same small conference room where they met at the beginning of this mission. She does not check to make sure that Shyvana and Vi have followed them inside. She hopes Caitlyn will be there to help her talk to him about what is wrong (or else to somehow know through adoptive motherly intuition). The room turns out to be empty, the lights all flicked off. She closes the door behind them and opens the blinds instead of turning them on, and he stands across from her still looking angry, as though he is considering shifting out of the room to go fight Jayce more. "Why would you punch him? What were you thin--"

"Why didn't you shut him down?" He says, and it is so rare that he cuts her off even during arguments that she can do nothing but blink and stare at him for a second. His jaw is clenched and he keeps crossing and uncrossing his arms like he doesn't know what to do with them. She can feel the adrenaline that pumps through him from where she stands multiple feet away and it takes a lot of restraint not to step closer and embrace him until he stops shaking with rage. It is not her he is mad at. She knows that she would be allowed to. "Why didn't you tell him we were dating?" He says, voice slightly quieter.

"Because it wasn't any of his..." She starts, and then trails off. _It wasn't any of his business_ , she thinks, but the hurt look on Ezreal's face makes it hard to finish this sentence. Ezreal, who introduces her to people _he_ has never met as "my girlfriend, Lux". She sighs and deflates a little bit, leaning back against the small gap of wall between the window and the corner. Pinching the bridge of her nose between two fingers, she closes her eyes and asks, "What do you mean, _shut him down_?"

She opens her eyes at the same time that he opens his mouth to angrily respond, and then she watches _him_ deflate. He leans back against a table, clenching it with both hands until his fingers are white. "Of course you don't get it. You don't even understand when _I'm_ hitting on you, half of the time," he says, but he mutters it as though scolding himself and not her. Her brows furrow in concern.

"Ezreal," she says, as softly as she can, and she is grateful when he actually looks up at her. Unsure what else she can do, she pushes herself off the wall and closes the space between them to kiss him. It takes him a second to actually kiss her back, the biggest indicator that something is wrong with him, but he doesn't push her away so she doesn't pull away.

He's the one who escalates it, but she is the one who lets him, letting out a sharp exhale when her back meets the wall. "I'm sorry I didn't tell Jayce we were dating," she says when his mouth meets her neck, biting hard enough that it will definitely leave behind a bruise, and she may or may not simply be fighting gasps with words.

"It's fine," he reassures, and she supposes he must somehow feel her skeptical look because he pulls away from her neck to look her in the eyes and she has to fight not to blush any harder than she already was. "Lux, it's _fine_. You didn't even pick up on the fact that he was hitting on you. That's not the sort of thing you casually mention like I do."

She opens her mouth to respond and before she can there is a metallic knock on the door that she knows is Vi. (It does not open. She imagines Vi is still traumatized from their travels.) "Are you okay?" Vi asks, sounding halfway like she's teasing them and halfway like she's still pouting that a full-blown fight didn't break out.

She does not know if she is asking her or Ezreal. He nods at her without saying anything, but she interprets its meaning. "It's fine. We'll just be a minute."


End file.
